How To Live With Pain – Finding Hope

One of the greatest struggles I have had in life is How To Live With Pain. Is there a way to find hope when we are dealing with pain in our life? This is a challenge that everyone seem to face in our life.

Wouldn’t it be great to find hope in the midst of pain! We especially need hope when we are going through painful times in our lives.

Finding Hope While Suffering

This week has been rough. The bursitis in my hip has slowed me down significantly. Being an active person I find this challenging, I want to do things but cannot do everything I want to do. This is not new for me I have had this happen twice before within the past year.

I now know the procedure – limited pain meds, therapy exercises, patience with myself, and above all, hope.

Hope Is Most Important

Hope says that this is not the end but just a season. Hope informs me that there can be better times coming if I can just learn to be patient!

Patience – that word that we all like to say we have but too often we want our patience right now. I want hope now, not later today, not tomorrow or next week. But hope comes at its own pace. When things get rough and the pain increases hope seems to be far away.

One of my favorite persons in the Bible is Job. He was a good guy. Yet God allowed him to suffer, not for anything he did wrong, but God believed that Job even in extreme suffering would still trust God. I guess you could say that Job was tested and he passed with flying colors.

As Job talks with the friends who said they came to help he poses these two questions; “Where then is my hope? Who can see any hope for me?” (Job 18:15 NIV) Job did not know what really was going on and his questions illustrate his doubt in all that was happening.

I believe that Job wanted to find hope, like something you can hold onto when times are rough. Yes, Job did find hope in the end but today it doesn’t have to be that way. Job had no Bible, He just believed in God and sought to live right with God. We today have the whole testimony of God’s enduring word to help educate and inform us.

We can find hope in the fact that God cares. In fact, he is the God of Hope. The Apostle Paul’s prayer in Romans 15:13 for the believers in Rome is a great reminder that God cares for all who follow him – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit”.

Learning To Live With Pain

We are not alone in our suffering. Many have gone before us and have learned to live with pain. The Bible is full of examples of those who have suffered with pain and endured. Jesus himself suffered more than we can imagine on the journey to the cross. He endured suffering knowing that in the end there would be blessing.

First – recognize that your pain has a purpose. You may not see it now but there is a reason. If you have pushed yourself too hard that pain came as warning sign to slow down, take better care of yourself, learn your limits. Many times we might not see the purpose at first but with patience and trust God will help us.

Second – Look for ways to help you deal with the pain. The internet is a great place to look for help with just about any topic. When you’re dealing with medical problems WebMD is a great source to help you understand how to live with chronic pain. Check out these 11 tips for living with Chronic pain. Learning ways to help is a great source for improved living.

Third – Give your concerns to God. This really should be first on our list as believers. We are not alone in our suffering. There is power in prayer. A great source of help online for Christians is a site called “What Christians Want To Know”. Here is a great article called 10 Awesome Bible Verses About Prayer. Check it out it will help add to your understanding on the life of prayer that will help us in our daily struggles.

Learning to live with pain is the hardest thing we may have to do, but with God there is always hope that we can make it through this season of life.

Sharing Your Needs With Others

Often we don’t share our needs with others. But with any condition you have that provides chronic pain there are always someone else that knows your pain; someone who can help even if it is just to listen and pray with you. Sometimes there are support groups that we can become a part of OR a group at church where we can meet and share.

Sharing with others can promote your healing as well as help you deal with whatever issue you have. It builds hope to have others around, it gives you peace in knowing that you are not alone.

“Knowing that someone else has the same painful situation as you, does not take away your own pain of course, but knowing you are not the only person on the planet with that pain confronts you with the reality that your suffering is not unique.” (Cherrychapman.com, Someone Today is Sharing your pain)

There is a peace that comes when we can share our struggles with other; knowing that we are not alone.

Being alone in our pain is a terrible place to be. Find somewhere that you can share your needs with others and your burden will be lightened.

There is Always Hope Even When Dealing With Pain

It has not been easy lately. I know that if you are reading this you too have to deal with pain and would love to hear some secret. The truth is that there is no secret to living in pain. There is just hope.

Hope that this is only a season for us; that one day we will no longer suffer.

Hope that comes from knowing that we are not alone in our suffering.

Hope that we can find ways to ease the suffering and in the process grow in our faith.

I hope that you have been blessed in reading this; that perhaps I have given you some ideas and help in your time of need. Please feel free to leave a comment or request prayer and I will get back with you ASAP.

Blessings

Ray